One day after Marvin Bagley III announced that he would reclassify and enroll at Duke this season, the school officially announced that Bagley had signed a financial aid agreement with Duke on Tuesday.
The 6-foot-11, 225-pound Bagley III is the newest member of a Duke freshman class recognized as the nation’s best, featuring three players ranked in the top 10 of the final 2017 ESPN 100: power forward Wendell Carter, Jr., point guard Trevon Duval and shooting guard Gary Trent, Jr. The class also includes point guard Jordan Goldwire and wings Alex O’Connell and Jordan Tucker.
“Marvin is a special basketball talent and a tremendous young man,” Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “He is completely dedicated to his improvement as both a player and student and, given his family’s deep history in this area, he is fully aware of what it means to be part of Duke University. We’re thrilled to add Marvin to our program.”
Bagley III’s father, Marvin Bagley, Jr., is a Durham, N.C., native who played football at North Carolina A&T.
Bagley III is coming off of a summer in which he averaged 25.8 points, a league-high 14.9 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game for the Nike Phamily in the EYBL.
He was a USA Today All-USA first team selection and the Gatorade California Player of the Year as a junior in 2017 after averaging 24.9 points and 10.1 rebounds to lead Sierra Canyon to a 27-3 record. He was also named the 2017 John R. Wooden CIF Southern Section Player of the Year while maintaining a 3.4 grade-point average in the classroom.
During his time in the Los Angeles area, Bagley III has also volunteered for Hoops with Heart, a non-profit organization based in the city that benefits underprivileged youth and student-athletes.
The Tempe, Ariz., native earned Arizona Republic Player of the Year honors as a freshman in 2015 after leading Corona del Sol High School to a state title.
Prior to his freshman season at Corona del Sol, Bagley III participated in the 2014 USA Junior National Team minicamp.
Duke will host Countdown to Craziness presented by Delta Air Lines on Oct. 20 and play exhibition games against Northwest Missouri State and Bowie State on Oct. 27 and Nov. 4, respectively, before opening the 2017-18 regular season at home against Elon on Nov. 10.
Photo: Scout.com
